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Fort Bend County, Texas
Fort Bend County is a county located along the Gulf Coast region in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. In 2000 its population was 354,452; in 2005, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated its population to have reached 463,650. It is named for a blockhouse positioned in a bend of the Brazos River, which was the center of life in the future county in early days. Its county seat is Richmond6, while its largest city is Sugar Land. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,295 km² (886 sq mi). 2,265 km² (875 sq mi) of it is land and 30 km² (11 sq mi) of it (1.29%) is water. Major Highways * U.S. Highway 59 * U.S. Highway 90 Alternate * State Highway 6 * State Highway 36 Adjacent counties *Waller County (north) *Harris County (east) *Brazoria County (southeast) *Wharton County (southwest) *Austin County (northwest) Demographics As of the census² of 2000, there were 354,452 people, 110,915 households, and 93,057 families residing in the county. The population density was 156/km² (405/sq mi). There were 115,991 housing units at an average density of 51/km² (133/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 56.96% White, 19.85% Black or African American, 0.30% Native American, 11.20% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 9.10% from other races, and 2.56% from two or more races. 21.12% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. In 2006 Fort Bend county had a population of 493,187 people. This represented a growth of 39.1% since 2000. Non-Hispanic whites made up 40.8% of the population, making Fort Bend one of a growing number of counties with no clear ethnic-racial group in the majorityhttp://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/48/48157.html. In 2000 There were 110,915 households out of which 49.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.80% were married couples living together, 11.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.10% were non-families. 13.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.14 and the average family size was 3.46. In the county, the population was spread out with 32.00% under the age of 18, 7.60% from 18 to 24, 32.30% from 25 to 44, 22.40% from 45 to 64, and 5.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 99.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $63,831, and the median income for a family was $69,781. Males had a median income of $47,979 versus $32,661 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,985. About 5.50% of families and 7.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.50% of those under age 18 and 9.40% of those age 65 or over. Government and politics County politics in Fort Bend County, as with all counties in Texas, are centered around a Commissioners' Court composed of four popularly elected County Commissioners, one representing each precinct drawn on the basis of population, and a county judge elected to represent the entire county. Other county officials include a Sheriff, District Attorney, Tax Assessor-Collector, County Clerk, District Clerk, County Treasurer, and County Attorney. Fort Bend County, like most Texas counties, was once a stronghold for the Democratic Party. In fact, so few Republicans resided in Fort Bend County at one time that in 1960, the county's Republican chair at the time once received a letter with the nickname "Mr. Republican" in lieu of his name http://www.fortbendgop.org/history.htm. However, as master-planned communities in the eastern and northern portions of the county began to develop, the Houston area's historically strong Republican base on the west side of Houston began to expand into Fort Bend County, and beginning in 1978, Republicans began to win several offices within the county. Among the first Republicans elected was the fiscally conservative Ron Paul to the U.S. House of Representatives, who became known for his staunch opposition to the general platforms of both major parties earning the nickname "Dr. No" in the process. Another key Republican elected during this time was future Congressman and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, who was elected to represent the county's only seat in the Texas House of Representatives. By 1982, several county-level positions were taken over by Republicans. In 1984, DeLay succeeded Paul in Congress after the latter ran for an unsuccessful U.S. Senate campaign; the seat was won by the Republican primary winner, Phil Gramm. The 1994 takeover of the Commissioners' Court by a Republican County Judge for the first time since Reconstruction solidified Fort Bend County's perceived reputation as a Republican stronghold. Today, every elected countywide office in Fort Bend County is held by Republicans, who also control a majority of precinct-based positions (County Commissioners, Constables, Justices of the Peace, etc.). No Democrat has carried Fort Bend County in the presidential election since 1964, when Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas won his second term. Despite Fort Bend being a Republican stronghold, Democrats continue to show sporadic strength in a handful of areas within the county. In 2004, George W. Bush won 57 percent of the vote compared to 42 percent for John Kerry, compared to 60 percent for Bush and 39 percent for Al Gore (as well as 2% for Green Party candidate Ralph Nader) in 2000, and Bill Clinton lost the county by only 12 percent in 1992 (to incumbent George Bush, whom Clinton defeated nationally) and 1996 (when Clinton defeated Bob Dole in the national election). Also, in 2006, Democrat Nick Lampson defeated Republican write-in candidate Shelley Sekula-Gibbs for the congressional seat in Texas's 22nd congressional district that was vacated by Tom DeLay after he resigned from Congress. While Lampson won all four counties that cover the district (Fort Bend, Harris, Brazoria and Galveston), Fort Bend gave Lampson his smallest winning margin of the four counties, at 6.4% percent, compared to 6.92% for Harris County, 7.23% for Brazoria County, and more than 45 percent in Galveston County (whose Democratic base is considered the most active in the state outside of Austin). Among the four Commissioners' Court precincts, Democrats are strongest in Precinct 2, which covers much of Missouri City and eastern areas of Stafford and is home to most of the county's black residents — a traditionally Democratic voting bloc. This is considered the prime Democratic stronghold in the district, as all of its elected officials are Democrats. The other three precincts are heavily Republican. Precinct 1 covers the southern portions of the county and the cities of Richmond and Rosenberg, as well as areas of Sugar Land south of the Brazos River, while Precinct 3 is situated in the northern part of the county, which includes its share of the Katy area and all of north Sugar Land, and Precinct 4 consists of the heavily Republican southern areas of Sugar Land and Missouri City, as well as several western portions of Sugar Land's extraterritorial jurisdiction. Commissioners' Court United States Congress Texas Legislature Texas Senate Texas House of Representatives Communities Cities Towns *Beasley *Fairchilds *Kendleton *Orchard *Pleak *Simonton *Thompsons Unincorporated areas * Cinco Ranch *Clodine * Cumings * DeWalt * Fifth Street * Fresno * Greatwood * Mission Bend * Rosharon * Sienna Plantation Education Public school districts *Brazos Independent School District *Fort Bend Independent School District *Katy Independent School District *Kendleton Independent School District *Lamar Consolidated Independent School District *Needville Independent School District *Stafford Municipal School District Colleges and universities *Houston Community College System *University of Houston System at Cinco Ranch *University of Houston System at Sugar Land *Wharton County Junior College Libraries Fort Bend County Libraries operates many libraries in the county. Houston Public Library operates one branch in the county. References External links *Fort Bend County official website * Historic Images from the Fort Bend Museum hosted by the Portal to Texas History * * Fort Bend County profile from The County Information Project Category:Counties of Texas Category:Fort Bend County, Texas Category:Greater Houston